Call for Nominations to the 2022 GBIF Young Researchers Award

The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) Secretariat is pleased to seek nominations for the 2022 Young Researchers Award on behalf of the network of national Participants.

This annual program aims to foster and recognize innovative research and discovery in biodiversity informatics by graduate students whose master’s and doctoral studies rely on GBIF-mediated data.

Calls for nominations go out each spring, and interested students must submit applications to either a national Head of Delegation or node manager from a GBIF Participant country. These national delegations may nominate a maximum of two students each year to the GBIF Secretariat.

The 2022 program will provide a pair of €5,000 prizes to two early-career researchers—ideally, one master’s and one PhD candidate—who obtain formal recommendations from GBIF Participant country heads of delegation and node managers.

Award: €5,000

Eligibility

To be eligible for this award, candidates must be enrolled in a university graduate program. He/she must be either

• citizens of a country participating in GBIF or
• students at an institution located in a GBIF participant country

Selection Criteria

The criteria for the GBIF Young Researchers Award include:

• Originality and innovation
• Use of and strategic significance for data accessed through GBIF
• Measurable effectiveness and impact in advancing biodiversity informatics and/or the conservation of biological diversity

Nomination Process

Candidates should prepare their proposal and nomination packets to include:

• Curriculum vitae of the student applicant including full contact information at the home institution.
• Supporting documents
  a. An official letter from the student’s faculty mentor/supervisor certifying that the applicant is a student in good standing in the graduate programme of the university.
  b. At least one, and no more than three, letters of support from established researchers active in a field that encompasses and incorporates biodiversity informatics (e.g., genetics, species composition and traits, biogeography, ecology, systematics, et al.)
• Research summary (200 words)
• Project description (maximum 5 pages, 12-point Arial) that describes
  a. The need for the research and the question(s) it addresses.
  b. The role of data accessed through GBIF in addressing these questions.

To apply, click here.

Deadline: June 20, 2022.

For more information, visit the official site.